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Japan to Launch a National Mobile Payments App

The primary banks in Japan will be launching a new payment app for domestic transactions. The promised solution will offer real time clearing, posting and settlement. Japan has had a real-time national payments product since the 1970’s but this new payment app will not utilize that platform, but will rely on a blockchain network. Background was provided in an article in Finextra:

The new service will bypass domestic payment rails to allow settlement of payment flows over the RippleNet blockchain network, shedding the costs associated with existing banking and ATM fees that are currently applied to domestic money transfers in Japan.

It will also introduce instant round-the-clock settlement of money transfers in a country where transactions are currently processed in a limited window on weekends and between 8.30am and 3.30pm daily.

This solution will function with QR codes which is common in other real time payment apps in Asia.

Overview by Sarah Grotta, Director, Debit and Alternative Products Advisory Service at Mercator Advisory Group